A Change of Seasons
by Sexy no Jutsu
Summary: With Sasuke’s defection complete, there is a new feeling of dread hanging over Konoha. Set after [Chapter 238], [No pairings]


Author: Sexy no Jutsu

E-mail: on profile

Disclaimer: I do not own the Naruto name. If I did, I wouldn't be wasting my time typing this.

Summary: With Sasuke's defection complete, there is a new feeling of dread hanging over Konoha. Set after Chapter 238, No pairings

**Chapter 1 – A Change of Seasons**

Uchiha Sasuke stared at the cold an unmoving body that was Uzumaki Naruto. His once best friend and pain in the ass now lay unconscious on the rocky ground of the valley. The rain continued to cascade down the sides of the ravine, as if the heaven's mourned to defeat of the fox boy.

Sasuke, with some difficulty, managed to sit up. He could feel his rib cage cracking with just that little of movement. After a few moments of regaining his composure, Sasuke was able to make to his feet.

The rain continued to beat down on the Uchiha harder as each second passed by. It was as if the harder the rain fell upon him, the more guilt it carried with it. Sasuke ran his right hand through his hair in the hope of finding the answer to the question that had plagued him.

'No, there can not be any doubts in my mind! This was my decision and my decision only. To truly reap the benefit of what I desire, I must sever the bonds that make me question myself. For when I face _him_, there will be no room for hesitation.'

Sasuke turned his head ever so slightly to the right and studied Naruto's prone body. His former teammate had put up better resistance then he would have ever thought possible. Naruto had numerous visible amounts of chakra burns all over his body. The amount of chakra that he had exerted during the fight had been alarming to the Uchiha.

'He has never shown chakra reserves _that high_ whenever we had training. Where the hell did it all come from? I will figure this out Naruto, mark my words.'

Sasuke slid his hands behind his head looking for the knot that held his forehead protector in place. His fingers began to fumble with the knot once it had been found. Gently undoing it, he turned it over in his hands to get a good look at it. The Leaf insignia met his gaze and returned its own unmoving stare to match his.

This was the first time Sasuke had ever taken time to take in the symbol. The symbol that had once represented power, once represented hope, and had once represented home, was now nothing more then a dream dead and broken.

Sasuke took his hand and placed it upon his shoulder and let it fall on his Curse Seal. This would be his _new_ symbol. _This_ symbol would now represent his power. _This _symbol would now represent his hope. _This _symbol would now represent his home.

And finally…

"This symbol will represent the severed bond between us, Naruto," said Sasuke as he stared with venom filled eyes at his opponent's body.

Sasuke turned the forehead protector over in his hands one last time before tossing it towards Naruto's body. The forehead protector landed with a soft 'thud' next to the boy's body. Sasuke closed his eyes and let the feeling of the running water flow down his body. It was the last cleansing he would ever need. With one final glance at his fallen friend, he slowly turned around and started the last leg of his trek to Sound.

The rain was harder then he had ever felt in his life.

* * *

The howling of the wind was growing stronger by the seconds. The wind carried with it the calm before the storm. What was at one point the light breeze of wind had now broken out into agonizing wails of anger. 

The branches of the trees were now starting to shake more violently. It was if they were in a deadlock for dominance over each other with neither letting up. This made it especially troublesome for a certain jounin to catch his footing with each landing.

Kakashi let out an irritated snort. He was already pressed for time enough as it was, he didn't need the added handicap of battling the forces of nature. Nearly slipping on the last branch he gave a quick glance over to Pakkun, his faithful tracking ninja dog.

"Do you still have the scent?" Inquired Kakashi.

"Yes, thankfully it is still lingering in the air. Not by much though, I'm afraid. Thanks to the sudden appearance of this thunderstorm, the scent has become harder to track and follow." Replied the dog in a low, gruff voice.

"How much further?"

"E.T.A. should be around 10 more minutes if we stay at our current pace."

"Pick up the pace then. We're getting there in half that."

"Roger."

With a quick slight – of – hand, Kakashi had pushed his forehead protector up onto his forehead. The Sharingan Eye exposed in all its red, pulsating glory. Taking in everything around it to be used by its wielder.

Channeling some chakra into his legs, Kakashi started to pick up speed. Pakkun mimicking him the entire time. The scenery around them started to pass them by at a quicker pace. The wind continued to whip and bite at their faces as they pushed against it. Both of them knew that traveling at these speeds, in this weather, and with this amount of urgency, that there would be no room for error. For they knew, that with every error, valuable time was lost.

With a light 'thud', Kakashi came to a stop on top of one of the cliffs of the Valley. Unknown to him, it was the same one Naruto had occupied when he had first arrived to see Sasuke already on the other side.

Wiping away a few strands of hair from his face he began to frantically search for any life in the area. He took note of the significant damage that had been done to the area. The symbolic relationship of the Valley of the End's had truly manifested itself that day.

'Kyubi's aura is still radiating in the air. Sasuke, to what lengths did you make Naruto go so far?'

Kakashi took another glance around the valley, looking for any clues to help him find his answers. He tossed a glance down into the depths of the ravine and focused on the bottom portion of the wall opposite his. His gaze locked onto to distinct crater imbedded in the wall. The pattern of it was very familiar.

'To use the Chidori on your own comrade. You have fallen further then I would have even thought possible in my wildest dreams, Sasuke.'

Kakashi exhaled the air that he had unconsciously started to hold. He continued to stare at the crater on the side of the canyon while his subconscious started to wonder.

'It has been a long time since it has rained this hard…'

Flashback

_Kakashi didn't know how long he had been standing there. He kept mulling over the events that had transpired in the last couple of days. From finding Gekkou Hayate's bloodied body to Orchimaru's successful assassination of the Sandaime, it had been a stressful period on both shinobi and civilian alike._

_He had once counted all the names on the Memorial. It had totaled at around 400 but since the events of the previous days, around 50 more had just been added. But, it seemed like no matter how many names were added, he could always lock on to the name that meant the most to him and haunted him like no other._

"_Staring at them won't bring them back. You do know that, don't you?"_

_Startled from being brought back from his own personal reverie, Kakashi slowly turned around to meet the gaze of his comrade and fellow jounin Yuuhi Kurenai. He took a moment to scrutinize her. She was wearing the same mourning garb as everyone else in the village was sporting. Her elegant red eyes continued to lock on him, letting him know she was waiting for a reply._

"_I have stared at this stone more then anyone else. I, of all people, should know that none of them are coming back."_

_With that Kakashi broke his eye contact with hers and returned his gaze to the monument in front of him. Kurenai let out a small sigh. She had gotten more out of him then she had originally thought. Shaking her head to clear her mind, she let her gaze fall to the far right of her. Curiosity piqued, she let her eyes fall on the lone figure who was seated under an old oak tree._

_Jiraiya knew he was being stared at. He could feel himself being dissected by the gaze of the woman. Normally this would have had him in pure exuberance. Any day a girl stared at him with such ferocity was a good day. Unfortunately, today wasn't that day._

_Slightly irritated, Jiraiya turned his eyes to meet with hers. Their gazes locked for only a moment and then she turned away, embarrassed that she had been caught staring in the first place. Exasperated, Jiraiya let out a small sigh before returning his attention to his original target._

_It had been years since he had visited this place. The three stumps hadn't changed one bit he was glad to note. They were still the same as they were when he had become a genin. He let out a light chuckle when the memory of being tied up to the middle one had crept up into his thoughts. That's it, he thought to himself; remember the good times, and lord only knows how much you will need them now._

_Kakashi had since then turned back from the memorial. With a quick glance at Jiraiya's unmoving figure in the distance he turned to Kurenai. _

"_We should get going. The Sandaime's funeral should be starting soon."_

"_Right."_

_With that, the two of them disappeared. Both making their ways towards the congregation of shinobi and civilians alike for the 'Good Bye' of their fallen leader._

_The rain was starting to fall harder._

Flashback

A loud whistle pierced the stagnant silence followed by a yell.

"Hey Kakashi! Get you mind out of the clouds! Now isn't the time for that! I found him!"

Kakashi gave a startled jump. He had forgotten where he was for a second. He began to mentally chastise himself for letting his mind wander like that. It seemed his bad habit was worse then he thought. Oh well, he would deal with it later.

Turning his gaze downward, he locked on to his tracking dog and gave a shout.

"Good job Pakkun! I'll be down there in a second."

Mentally psyching himself, he gave a leap downward. Performing a small flip while in the air, he landed gracefully a few feet away from Pakkun and Naruto's still unconscious form. Turning his gaze on Naruto he let his mind speak.

"What's the diagnosis so far?"

"He's alive but barely. If it wasn't for the healing properties of the Kyubi then he would more then likely be dead right now. He's breathing seems to be stabilized for the time being but his pulse is very weak. Next, he has some pretty severe chakra burns. Probably from forcing the Kyubi's chakra out of his body. All in all, he is pretty banged up but the damage could be a lot worse. At least his body is still in one piece."

Pakkun let his analysis finish off there. He turned his head up to Kakashi to see if his diagnosis was well received. Kakashi turned his gaze downward to the dog and gave a slight nod of his head inclining that he agreed with the report.

Shifting his position, he bent over Naruto and started to pick him up. Slipping one hand under his legs and the other under his back, he stood up and started heading in the direction back to Konoha.

"We need to get him back to the village A.S.A.P. Tsunade-sama will need to look at him and give him the proper medical treatment he needs."

"Understood."

With that the two of them vanished. Both of them high-tailing it back to Konoha as quickly as possible. Unknown to them, they had been watched the entire time by a figure in the shadows.

The figure rose up out of the ground that he had been hiding in. Standing up, the figure let his red and black cloak linger in the wind. His yellow eyes stared transfixed in the direction that Kakashi and Pakkun had taken off in.

"Hatake Kakashi; Sharingan Kakashi; Son of White Fang, an impressive shinobi but still nothing more then a bothersome fly."

Zetsu then turned his gaze to the direction that Sasuke had left earlier. His face torn between delight and dissatisfaction.

'So the last remaining Uchiha has gone seeking the power of the serpant. Itachi-kun will be most unpleased.'

Letting out an irritated snort, Zetsu let his gaze fall for a moment. He let his mind wander and seemed to be contemplating his next move. A malicious smirk formed on his lips and his eyes danced with masochistic delight. He gaze returned to the direction of the Sound village.

'Perhaps I should pay Orchimaru a visit. Remind him of whose plans he is interfering with.'

Letting out a low, callous laugh, Zetsu let himself start sinking back into the ground. And the Akatsuki member who had just been there seconds before, vanished with out a trace.

* * *

It was wet. 

_Really_ wet.

Naruto started to stir. Gently feeling with his fingers, he could tell that he was surrounded by water. The echoing of water dripping could be heard all around him.

'Dripping water?'

Using what strength he could find in his arms, Naruto pushed himself over. He was now lying on his back instead of his stomach. He turned his attention to the ceiling. Pipes decorated the top of the corridor he was lying in. Water seemed to seep through the walls as if it were bleeding.

The corridor was lined with torches adored to the walls to allow for light. Looking up and to his left his eyes fell on a chain on the wall. Reaching out to it, Naruto started to pull himself up. He could feel his muscles strain with just that little movement. With some difficulty, Naruto was finally able to get himself standing upright.

Naruto turned his eyes down the long corridor. A shiver of fear traveled up his spine. He could feel the ominous aura of whatever awaited him down the long dark tunnel.

'I have been here before,' Naruto thought bitterly to himself. He seemed to have finally come to his senses and realization of exactly where he was wasn't all that comforting.

With one finally comforting breath, he started his walk down into the darkness. With each step, the air got heavier around him. With each step it became harder for him to move forward. Normally, determination was some thing blonde had an abundance of, but for this place, it seemed to waver.

Naruto continued to move forward even though the more rational part of him told him to flee. Eventually he found himself in front of a cell. A particular cell that held a beast.

Kyubi opened one of his ominous eyeballs and let it fall on the genin. The great demon knew the boy was coming. He continued to stare at the adolescent with his cat iris, hoping to instill some unwanted fear in the boy. Naruto was shaking slightly. It seemed to be working. He decided to speak.

"**So kit, how did you enjoy my power?"**

Naruto's voice escaped him at the moment. He remembered the power the Kyubi was talking about. The absolute ecstasy it brought. The feeling that nothing in the world could harm you. That you were the 'Almighty One' and everyone else was just in your way. He remembered well.

"You mean that animalistic fury, don't you…?" Naruto trailed off.

"**Ah yes, _that _feeling. How did you like it?"**

Naruto was starting to feel edgy. He didn't like the fox's mind games. The Kyubi was trying to pierce feelings within him that he didn't want. He decided to just remain silent so he wouldn't get caught up in the little game of cat and mouse.

"**Not talking, eh, boy? That's fine. You'll seek me out later. Until then, watch yourself."**

With that the Kyubi sent a wave a chakra towards Naruto. His senses dulled due to the chakra, Naruto felt himself being forcefully ejected from the inner portion of his own subconscious.

* * *

Tsunade continued to stare at the unmoving body of her self-adopted little brother. She could tell by the emotion that flashed through his face that he was battling with some unknown specter. Taking a quick glace over at the vitals signs on the machine next to him she let out a small sigh. Everything was normal. They would need to wait for him to awake before she could get the story out of him. 

With a heavy heart she started moving towards to the door. She would have liked nothing more then to be in there with him but the duties of the Hokage title came first unfortunately. With one last quick glance at him, she shut the door.

"So how is the brat?"

Tsunade turned to her right to see her ex-teammate Jiraiya leaning with his back against the wall. She gave him the good once-over. No matter how many years had passed, he never changed a bit physically. He had the same messy white hair he did now as he did when he was 14. The only thing that seemed to change was the level of his perversity. While it had been above normal for him as a hormone charged 14 year old, it was definitely off the scale for him as a 50 year old.

Tsunade cast a nonchalant glance towards Jiraiya. With a quick flip of her wrist she motion for him to follow her. Jiraiya gave a nod with his head that said he understood. Albeit a bit begrudged, he didn't feel like leaving the immediate vicinity of his apprentice's hospital room.

With slight reluctance, Jiraiya pushed himself off the wall he was leaning on. He gave Naruto's hospital room one last glance then started walking to catch up with Tsunade's quickly receding figure.

After finally catching up to Tsunade, Jiraiya was about to restate is earlier question when suddenly Tsunade's hand shot up, motioning for silence.

"I won't beat around the bush Jiraiya. Naruto is lucky to be alive. If this was any other shinobi in the world, they would probably have died before help could be administered."

"So basically, without the help of his _other_, he would have died?"

"Yes, that is the gist of the situation. In terms of physical injuries he should make a full recover. Possible mental trauma is another story though."

"What do you mean by mental trauma? Do you mean in terms of psychological or internal brain problems?"

"Psychological more then anything. Betrayal is never an easy symptom for a shinobi to deal with. It isn't something I can prescribe a medicine for to make the pain go away. He is going to have to deal with the problem himself. All we will be able to do is lend a helping hand. Also, neither you nor I have any real idea of possible side effects the Kyubi chakra may have on Naruto. There is always the possibility that the chakra may have an abnormal affect on his subconscious."

"I see. Have you been able to get a report for the activities that went down?"

"Unfortunately I haven't been able to interrogate Nara Shikamaru yet. Ever since the recover team was sent to help as back up and came back with the mangled bodies of Akimichi Chouji and Hyuuga Neji, I have been busy in the I.C.U."

"And their conditions?"

"Stabilized for the time being. The Hyuuga had lost around 2 and a half pints of blood and had an alarmingly big hole on the left side of his stomach. After some difficulties, Shizune and a team of medics were finally able to stabilize the wound on the Hyuuga's stomach with a complex sealing process involving a lock of his hair."

"And the Akimichi?"

"He ate the red pepper pill. After running out of fat to produce into chakra, the pill started pulling on the marrow in the bones to produce chakra. Thanks to the help of Nara Shikato's medicinal journal, we were able to concoct an antidote before the condition worsened."

Jiraiya nodded his head in approval. He knew of the vast amounts of knowledge the Nara clan had when it came to medicine. Combined with Tsunade's own knowledge, the idea of an antidote didn't seem to far-fetched.

Tsunade had finally come to a halt at a desk in the lobby of the hospital. With a quick click of her heels, she turned and faced Jiraiya.

"If you will excuse me now, Jiraiya. I have other patients that need attending to. I suppose you can find _something_ to entertain yourself with for the next few hours. Don't worry about Naruto. You'll be the first to know once he wakes up."

With that, the Hokage turned her back to her teammate and proceeded down another white corridor. Jiraiya stared at her retreating form for a few seconds before making his own way out of the hospital. With a small perverted grin on his face he started for the hot springs district of the village. Tsunade had just basically given him permission to go peeping, didn't she? With a new found energy, Jiraiya took to the rooftops. Fully intending to try and get a little peeping done.

* * *

Gaara had no idea how long he had been sitting. In fact, he didn't really care at all. Millions of questions had started to plague his mind recently. Ever since his _first_ defeat in combat to another shinobi, things just didn't seem to make much since anymore. 

Uzumaki Naruto was an enigma to him. He was everything Gaara was not. For Naruto's hotheaded nature, Gaara was stoic. For Naruto's brash decision's, Gaara was calm and collected. For Naruto's love, there was Gaara's hate.

Hate. A strong word that could describe a lot of things. Gaara had hated the world and everyone around him for the blow he had been dealt. He had been born an experiment. A guinea pig. He had been a successful experiment though. To an extent…

Gaara was a force to be reckoned with. No one could deny that. Out of all the opponents the red headed boy had ever come across, _two, _were still alive to this very day.

First, there was that taijutsu only user in the green. Rock Lee. Rock Lee had gotten lucky in his fight against Gaara. His greatest strength was Gaara's greatest weakness. Rock Lee's speed had exposed the greatest flaw in Gaara's Suna no Tate.

The Suna no Tate, while great defense mechanism, was useless against the speed that was shown by Rock Lee in the preliminary fights of the Chuunin Exam. Gaara, though, seemed to have luck on his side though during that fight. Ironically as that may seem. Due to the self inflicted injuries needed to truly show how powerful he was, Rock Lee had dug his own grave.

Gaara had only needed mere seconds to switch himself with a Suna Otori. With that, he had been able to survive the Omote Renge. Taking advantage of the fatigued and slightly awed Lee, Gaara had gone on the offense. He used his sand to physically pummel and subdue the tired green genin.

He hadn't counted on the genin's knowledge on how to open and utilize the Hachimontonkou. The Ura Renge was an extremely powerful and devastating move to the opponent and the user. Gaara had taken a beating during the duration of that move. He was pleased with himself that he had thought ahead enough to use his sand to cushion his fall from the final assault of the Ura Renge.

Using what strength he could muster, he sent the sand out in and managed to lock Rock Lee's right arm and leg in with the sand and perform Sabaku Kyuu. With that, he had managed to severely cripple and make the Leaf genin immobile. He would have gone further had he not been interrupted by the boy's jounin sensei.

That was the first opponent that he had ever fought that had managed to survive the encounter with him. Even if he was barely alive after the fight, he still lived. Gaara's mind began to drift to the image of a blue eyed and blond haired genin.

Uzumaki Naruto was a unique character to one such as Gaara. He came from the same childhood as he did. An abomination of the village. A black eye to those that knew the truth. Yet, he made it seem as if nothing in the world was wrong. He always had that idiotic grin of indifference on his face. Not a care in the world.

But, maybe that would be different now.

Naruto had said that he was an orphan. He never grew up with a person to take care of him at home like Gaara did. He had only been sub ducted to the prejudice of his village through the actions shinobi's and civilians. He had never had an assassination attempt on him. Well, at least not one that Gaara knew about.

Still, even after a day of fear in the eyes of others, Gaara had Yashumaru to come home to. At least Yashumaru had treated Gaara like a human. Not a monster. Not a murdering machine. Just a normal human. An equal. A friend.

Naruto didn't have any of that though. He didn't have a person to come home to. He didn't have a person to look after him. All he had was an empty apartment and a hate note nailed to his door everyday when he went home.

There was another thing though. Something else that Gaara had experienced that Naruto hadn't.

Betrayal.

Flashback

_Yashumaru had been the missing link for Gaara. He was the person that Gaara needed the most to function. But, as fate would have it, things were not meant to be. _

_Yashumaru didn't feel the same as Gaara. In fact, he hated everything about the red headed boy. Every breath he took, every step he took, was a kick to the head for Yashumaru. This…thing was the bane of his existence. This was the monstrosity his sister had died to while damning all the while. So when the Kazekage had approached him with the mission to assassinate his nephew, he was all too happy to accept._

_It had been another sleepless night for Gaara. He had been staring at the stars in the sky when he felt an ominous presence around him. Only being 6 though at the time, he had a hard time trying to find out where exactly it was coming from. A kunai had shot straight at him from the unknown assailant in the dark. _

_The Suna no Tate had acted on instinct. It easily deflected the kunai before reverting back to normal. Gaara looked around in a panicked state. He knew he was feared and that people were afraid of his existence but this was the first time someone had ever retaliated against him._

_Gaara was beside himself in shock. He was the son of the Kazekage. Why would a shinobi try and assassinate the son of the leader of the village? It didn't make any sense._

_The unknown assassin was coming back in for another attack now. Letting his shock slide off, Gaara let his sand take over. The sand of Shukaku quickly deflected the next wave of kunai's that were aimed at him. With the kunai's out of the way, the sand quickly made its way to the assailant. With bone shattering force, the sand pinned the attack to a nearby wall. The attacker started to gasp for breath when he realized that the sand was quickly crushing his internal system. He could feel the blood coming up through his esophagus. _

_Gaara started to make his way over to the immobile shinobi. His eyes were set ablaze with fury. How dare this person attack him! Gaara reached for the mask the attacker was wearing. With a quick swipe of his hand he had removed the mask._

_Gaara recoiled in shock. Emotions started to cloud his judgment. He vulnerable, cold, alone, afraid, angry, and worst of all…he felt betrayed._

_Gaara stared at Yashumaru's face. Yashumaru started back at him, meeting his eyes with his own. Gaara took a tentative step forward. He hadn't realized it, but he was starting to shake._

"_Yashumaru…?"_

"_Yes. It's me…"_

"_But why?"_

"_Simple. I was ordered to. I could have declined to though."_

_This made time stand still for Gaara. Why would the one person who seemed to acknowledge his existence try and kill him even though he could have declined?_

_Gaara was afraid to voice his next question._

"_Why did you agree though? What did I ever do you?"_

_Yashumaru at this line dropped off into a low sickening chuckle. The blood in his mouth started to slip out from his lips and fall over the sand that chained him to the wall. Yashumaru brought his head back up to Gaara's and flashed him a bloodied smile._

"_What have you ever done to me? HA! How about, 'what haven't you done to me'?" asked Yashumaru. Sarcasm and venom dripping with each word._

"_Do you really want to know what it is you did to me?"_

_Gaara was starting to wish he hadn't asked. With slight hesitation he gave a nod of his head. Telling his uncle to continue. Yashumaru let out a small snort._

"_You are the bane of my existence. That is what you are. You took the life of my only sister. Instead being able to kill you for that atrocity I was instead, made your caretaker. Do you know how much it stung at my pride to have to baby sit the one responsible for her death?"_

_Yashumaru stopped his soliloquy there for a mere second. Turning his head to the right he spat some blood that had accumulated in his mouth during his speech. With the taste of his own blood still in his mouth, he turned his attention back to his nephew's now quivering form._

"_You are the plague upon this village. The black-eye of our operations. The walking embodied reincarnate of this village's fear. You are an experiment that worked great. Too great though. You were supposed to be the future of this village. The backbone of future militaristic operations that would come. But you aren't any of that. Instead of creating a super shinobi, we got a monster. My sister, your mother, died while cursing your existence the whole time. That is why she dubbed you 'Gaara'."_

_Yashumaru let the disdain drip off his words when he had finished. He wanted to show his nephew how much he truly hated and despised his existence. He took a glance over at Gaara's direction. The red-head was on the verge of tears. He had his hands pushed against the sides of his skull in an attempt to quell some unknown beast._

"_**Just kill him…" **it whispered. The sickening tone it used nearly broke Gaara's mind in two. Gaara pushed his hands harder against this head. He wanted to the voice to go away._

"_**Drench the sand with his blood. Crack his bones with the sand. Just kill him…" **it continued in its taunting tone. Gaara fell to the ground as the pain became more unbearable to him. He let one eye fall on Yashumaru._

"_You. You were the one I trusted more then anyone. You were the one I loved. You…you betrayed me! I'LL KILL YOU!"_

_Gaara slowly started to stand himself up. With venom in his eyes he turned his gaze to Yashumaru's body. Killer intent pouring out of his body. He could see his uncle squirm under the pressure of the malice he was sending._

_Gaara removed one of his hands from the side of his head and directed it towards Yashumaru. He gave Yashumaru one last masochistic look._

"_Sabaku Kyuu_."

_The sand caved in on Yashumaru's half dead figured. It ripped him in to pieces. Blood started to seep out of the sand cocoon. Gaara watched in a trance like fixation as the blood flowed from the attack like water in a river. _

_Gaara turned his gaze from the blood back on to the overview of the village. He looked to the rooftops and found a figure staring back at him._

_The Kazekage was staring at his son. The robes of the Kazekage hid the look of perplexity and terror his face held. He could feel the lifeless stare of his creation piercing a hole through his figure. With that, the Kazekage turned his back to his son and walked off in the opposite direction. All the while feeling his son bore a hole through his back with his eyes._

_Gaara watched his father fade into the darkness of the night. He turned his gaze to the sky, just in time to see the falling of a star out of the heavens._

Flashback

Gaara gave a slight cringe whenever he thought about that night. It had been the most absolute horrifying experience he had been subjected to. It had been a night of living hell. To find out that the person you had cared about the most in the world had this deep embedded hatred for you, is simple devastating.

It had also been the night where Gaara had come to terms with himself. For the first time ever, he acknowledged that he was alone in world. A plague of the village, as he had been dubbed.

"Oi! Gaara-kun!" shouted an exuberant voice from behind him.

Gaara slowly turned around. The figure of Rock Lee came walking forward. Lee was wearing his traditional green spandex outfit. He had bandages wrapped around both of his fore arms with the tails fluttering in the wind. His bowl style haircut was trim as usual. No strand was out of place. And his teeth were still white as could be.

Gaara was amazed at how casually Rock Lee was able to come up to him. This was the same shinobi whom Gaara head dealt life/career ending injuries in the preliminary fights of the Chuunin Exam no less then 2 months ago.

Lee seemed to be able to sense the discomfort that Gaara was emitting. Turning to Gaara, Lee flashed him a wide toothed grin.

"There is no need to be uncomfortable around me, Gaara-kun. I harbor no ill-will to you for the injuries you gave me."

Gaara eased up a little bit at those words but not before he gave a snort of irritancy.

"The fact that you don't mean me any bodily harm baffles me. Either you are too nice for your own good or an ignorant fool." Was Gaara's stoic reply.

"To say I _never _harbored ill-will to you would be a lie. As of right now, I have forgiven you for the injuries you gave me. My body is well now so it is not like my life is destroyed. Aside from that, why should I become your enemy when you are an allied shinobi of the Leaf now? A strong ally at that, I might add. You completely annihilated that Sound ninja. Our enemies are one in the same now."

Gaara found himself agreeing with the emerald dressed shinobi. It made perfect sense. Gaara turned his gaze onto the village that was below him. He watched the people go about their daily lives. People went to the market and came out with piles of groceries. People came out of the clothing shops with new clothes. Everything seemly perfect when watched from afar.

"So how is the village reacting to the news of the defection of the Uchiha?"

Lee turned his glance to the red headed Suna shinobi. He had been hoping this was a topic they could possibly stay away from. But, as fate would have it, it happened anyway.

"It is…difficult for them to believe. Sasuke was the survivor of a great tragedy in the village's history. Many are refusing to believe that he willingly went to Orochimaru. Rumors have already started to circulate around that he was kidnapped. Another rumor had to deal with 'that demon driving the last Uchiha mad'. Whatever 'that demon' is, I do not know."

Lee gave an exasperated sight when he finished. He quickly dropped to all fours and started to do push-ups. It was a way to help relieve stress for Lee. Just something to keep himself active.

Gaara watched Lee for a while as he did push-up after push-up. There had been one question eating away at Gaara's brain ever since he had heard Naruto had been brought back to the village. Maybe Rock Lee would have an answer to this question…

"So how is Uzumaki taking the defection?" Gaara question in a stoic tone. He didn't want the green genin to know how curious he really was.

Lee paused in mid push-up when he heard Gaara voice that question. Lee shot Gaara a glance before sighing. Pushing himself back upright, Lee turned to Gaara.

"I'm not sure how Naruto-kun is going to take Sasuke's leaving. He hasn't woken up yet."

"Betrayals change people," Gaara spoke up suddenly.

Lee turned and met Gaara's eyes with his own. Visibly tense from taking in that new piece of information.

"What do you mean by 'change people'?" questioned the green genin.

"It's simple. Being betrayed by someone who you considered a friend will change your perspective of those around you. I highly doubt Uzumaki will be the same."

With that, Gaara started to walk away, his clothes fluttering in the wind. Lee watched his figure retreat into the distance. With a heavy sigh, Lee started to make his way back towards the village.

"We shall see about _that_, Gaara-kun." Lee said to himself as he continued walking.

* * *

Sakura had been anxiously awaiting the return of Naruto. He had, after all, promised her that he would bring back her beloved Sasuke-kun. 

Sakura had been a nervous wreck the entire day. Her mind kept replaying the scenario with Sasuke from the night before. What did he mean by what he said?

That one little 'Thank you' had sent her into a whirlwind of emotions.

It was a simple phrase that was used between people everyday. People would give thanks for food, clothing and shelter. People would be thankful to the generosity that others would show on occasion.

But what exactly did this one mean?

Sasuke was never one to show his emotions to others. He wasn't loud and brash like Naruto was. He kept to himself mostly. On occasion he would let his voice be known to others. It usually carried a belittling tone with it. A biting or sarcastic remark would follow his tongue.

But what exactly did he have to be thankful for when it came to Sakura?

Sakura had always thought Sasuke had seen her as just another obsessed fan of his. And in truth she was. It was something she had a hard time coming to terms with. Anything that remotely affected Sasuke, she wanted to be a part of. Whenever she had been in trouble, she had expected Sasuke to come to her aid, her own personal knight in shining armor.

Sakura let out a small sigh. Thinking about Sasuke was starting to give her a migraine.

'Besides, why should I let it bother me so much? I can just ask him when Naruto comes back.'

Sakura let a small smile grace her lips. _Of course_ she would ask Sasuke later.

Sakura let her eyes gaze out over the scenery that was before her. She was standing on the bridge that team 7 would usually gather at. She looked over the side of the bridge and found her reflection staring back at her.

"Sakura!" shouted a voice from behind her.

Quickly snapping out of her reverie, she turned around and found the figure of Yamanaka Ino running towards. Sakura felt her annoyance level start to go up. Ino was the last person she truly wanted to see at the moment.

"What is it you want, Ino?"

"I just heard the news. Shikamaru's team just got back from their mission!"

That definitely caught Sakura's attention.

"Really! Where are they? Is Sasuke-kun with them?"

Millions of questions had started to flood from her head to her mouth. With those few words from Ino she could feel the adrenaline rush thought out her body. She **had **to know what happened.

Ino gave Sakura a few seconds to take in the information she had just passed on to her. Ino had thought about just heading straight to the hospital when she heard the news but figured Sakura would want to know as well.

With a quick grab at Ino's arm, Sakura had started to pull Ino with her as she started to sprint in the direction of the hospital.

They arrived at the hospital a few minutes later. Both were tired and out of breath from the run over. The receptionist from behind the counter was busy giving the girls a reprimanding glare for causing so much commotion in a hospital.

After catching their breath for a few minutes, the two girls walked over to the receptionist's desk. The middle-aged woman behind the counter gave both of the girls the once over with her wandering eye.

"What can I help you two with?"

Sakura and Ino both turned to each and then simultaneously gave each other a determined nod. Sakura decided to voice her question first.

"I was wondering if you could tell me the room number for Uzumaki Naruto. He should have just been brought in a little while ago."

Ino then decided to voice her question.

"And could you also give us the room numbers for Akimichi Chouji and Nara Shikamaru?"

The receptionist quickly turned to her computer and brought up a list of 'in' patients. Jotting down the names and room numbers on a piece paper near her, she then handed it to Sakura.

"Uzumaki Naruto is on the third floor, room 3b. Akimichi Chouji is on floor five in the ICU, only family members will be able to see him until his condition changes. As for Nara Shikamaru, he's already been cleared for dismissal but his room is on the third floor right next to Mr. Uzumaki's."

Thanking the receptionist, the two girls headed for the stairwell. Taking their time, Sakura and Ino started ascending the stairs, shoulder by shoulder. Ino was the first one to break the uncomfortable silence between the two.

"I'm going to go and see if they might let me go and see Chouji. Even if I'm not immediate family, there might be a chance since I'm his teammate. And since Shikamaru is already cleared for dismissal, I'm not worried about him."

With that the girls came up to a section marked '3rd floor'. Flashing Sakura a small smile, Ino continued her trek up the stairs. Sakura turned her head towards the door that led into the 3rd floor area. Bracing herself, she opened the door, not quite sure what to expect.

Taking her time, Sakura walked out into the hospital corridor. The place was nothing special. Your typical hospital design: lots of white. White walls and white tile decorated the halls. There were a few paintings up on the walls. Most of them depicted doctors and other various medical personal.

'Okay. Let's see, I'm looking for room 3b'

Sakura started walking down the corridors. She was diligently looking for the room marked 3b. For in it, held the answer to the questions she had going through her head: Uzumaki Naruto.

Snapping out of her reverie, Sakura soon found herself face to face with a door labeled 3b. Giving a small swallow, she hesitantly took hold of the doorknob and let herself in.

* * *

Tsunade let a small sigh before taking another sip of the sake she had poured herself. She was sitting in her office and looking out through one of the windows, taking in the scene of the village below her. 

For the first time in a long time, she was at a loss on what to do. Orochimaru had just gained a crucial component to his plans and the threat of the Akatsuki still loomed overhead like the calm before the storm. What made them even scarier was the fact that so little was known about them and the way they operate. The only two confirmed members so far were Uchiha Itachi and Hoshigaki Kisame. The rest still remained a mystery.

"What are we going to do Jiraiya?"

Said man was currently leaning against the wall near the window Tsunade was looking out of. It pained him to hear the small amount of desperation he could trace in his comrades voice. Taking a small sip of the sake he too was drinking, he let out a small sigh.

"To be perfectly honest Tsunade. I don't know what we should do either. With the Sharingan in Orochimaru's possession and the doings of Akatsuki unknown to the rest of the world, we're in the dark."

Tsunade let her head fall hearing that. Hearing that Konoha was in the dark on information, while true, wasn't what she wanted to hear from him at that very moment. It just made reality sound so much grimmer.

"But don't worry Tsunade."

Tsunade jerked her head back up and watched Jiraiya shift himself off of the wall and start making his way towards the door. Stopping just before he reached the door, he turned his head to face hers. He flashed her a smile.

"We'll think of something. Remember, it's not the end, or even the beginning of the end. It's the end of the beginning."

With that said, the toad sennin excused himself out of the office and shut the door behind him. Tsunade sat there contemplating the words Jiraiya had left her with. Taking another sip of sake, she let a smile grace her lips.

'I hope you're right Jiraiya. By Kami's sake, I hope you're right.'

Turning around in her chair, she took another glance outside the window to the village below her. It had started to rain.

* * *

Author ramblings: Well, first off I must say that I think the finished product came together better then I had initially expected. I can't really say too much as this is only the first chapter but I hope a few people out there enjoyed it. I have no idea when the next chapter will be out so I can't make any promises. 

As far as grammar and stuff goes, I'm not the best at it. If someone spots a mistake then please leave a note about it in a review and I'll check it out.

There were a few scenes that I had a bit of a problem with. Most specifically the Gaara – Rock Lee one. Right now I'm debating whether or not to go back and redo it. Anyway we'll see what happens.


End file.
